Thank you Treva Entertainment for sending us this game to review!

I've reviewed my fair share of 3D vet games, but this is the first time I've gotten to cuddle and treat koalas, kangaroos, wombats, dingoes, wild horses, and numbats.  Until Outback Rescue 3D, I've never even heard of a numbat.   You don't get to treat all of these animals at first since you have to unlock new areas and research the animals before you can treat them.  

Outback Pet Rescue 3D starts you off as a trainee at wildlife station.  Your co-worker will tell you the basics and will guide you in what to do next if you get stuck.  The controls are touch screen based, which is easy enough to use, but other control options would  have been nice.  Walking and driving are done  by guiding the player or car with the stylus on the bottom screen.  An interactive driving mode would have been more fun than dragging a car icon around.

You'll get to explore the Australian plains, desert mountains and eucalyptus forests.   In the beginning you'll only have access to the plains which has kangaroos and wild horses to treat.     There are three icons that will appear on your map.  An exclamation mark means that there is a place to observe wild animals doing their thing.  When explored it shows a 2D image of the group of animals. A heart icon means that a young animal has been separated from its mother and you have to pick it up, locate and reunite it with its family.   A medical cross means that there is an injured animal needing treatment.

When treating an animal you have to click on the magnifying icon to locate and examine the 3D rendered animal.  You then have to use the hand, thermometer, or stethoscope icons to get enough clues to make an accurate diagnosis.  Most the time all that is needed is the magnifying glass and the hand.  If you have a shelter constructed, you can take more serious cases like broken bones and bacteria infected animals back with you.  

One glitch I noticed is that I was able to take multiple animals of the same type back with me, but only allowed to treat one at a time with the simplistic interface.  When an animal is in your care, you have to blow a whistle to get them to come to you.  There is no way to select an animal to treat.   One you have an animal's attention, you can feed, groom, pet and treat them.  Without proper care, an animal will escape and run away.  If healed, you can set them free and earn a decent amount of money.

While I never ran out of money or supplies, there is an option to convert play coins into game currency.  The game will notify you when you're running low on medicine and food.  There is a computer where you can order research materials, food and medical supplies.  Facility upgrades are available the following day, everything else is delivered immediately.  

Other than unlocking areas to travel to and animals to treat, you can upgrade the facility and eventually become the manager of it.  There are financial rewards to treating 15, 50, and 100 animals.  After unlocking everything there may not be much re-playability unless you like cuddling with koalas and other marsupials.      

The music is twangy and loops  frequently.  I found it fitting and didn't mind it, but a lady sitting by me at the pediatrician's office felt differently and asked me to turn the volume down on my 3DS.  To each their own.

While Outback Pet Rescue 3D is family friendly and easy to control, it's not recommended for pre-kindergarten age kids.  Treating the animals properly requires reading and memorization skills since you have to administer the medicine in a particular order.  For example, you have to clean and disinfect a wound before putting a bandage on it.  

This game retails on Nintendo's eShop for $19.99.  At full price I only recommend it for school age kids who either like vet games or Australian wildlife.  I see little replay value after treating 100 animals and being promoted to manager.  That achievement will only take a few hours to unlock.